Chapter 1: introduction

Andrew's POV:

Staring out the window of my penthouse had always been fascinating to me. I felt a deep thrill of power having the world beneath my feet. It felt satisfactory as well as mighty.

Power. This simple five-letter word is pretty complicated in reality. Where I found power fascinating, I also found it a bit scary because once you are high on the power you can't afford not to have it. So, I always made sure to gain it; either by earning or snatching, because the withdrawal symptoms would be too much for me to handle.

A mere feel of vibration pulled me out of my haze. Reaching into the coat pocket, I took out my phone and groaned heavily after realizing who was calling. Picking up the phone, I immediately started speaking before Jacob had a chance to reprimand me for being late. Little did he know that I was not late but actually had entirely forgotten about our meet-up. But there was no need for him to know, right?"I'm just about to reach there. I'll be there in 5." I said on the phone.

"Dude, don't you dare tell me that you had forgotten about our meet-up." He sounded frustrated, which was totally justified, considering I was already 20 minutes late.

"On the way, buddy. Traffic problem, you know?" I lied.

"Ohh yeah I know all about you and your problems. Seriously Andrew, at least update your excuses. They are as old as that painting of Mona Lisa." He hated when I'm late because not so many people dared to make him wait but there are always exceptions, right?

"Wow what a reference" I chuckled

and then continued, "Just give me 10 minutes and I'll be there". Without giving him the chance to make any more petty references I ended the call, called my chauffeur, and asked him to get my car ready in 3 minutes.

I was still in my suit after arriving from a meeting. So, I grabbed my keys and went out of my penthouse. A crisp black suit, silk black tic, Rolex on the wrist, and shiny black shoes on the feet were definitely not casual attire for a casual meeting with a friend but after listening to Jacob's frustration, no one had the time to take a shower and change into comfy clothes.

Ride to Casino was always smooth; the anticipation of gambling, cards, wine, and the alluring aroma of cigars always elated my senses. I was coming to casinos ever since I was 15 years old. It won't be a lie to say that it is my second home or maybe the only home. The only place where I found some solace, a lot of money, and my only best friend, Jacob rivera.

Jacob and I knew each other ever since I came to my senses, recognized the truth, and decided to stand on my own feet, not because I wanted to but because I needed to. So, when I decided to, try my luck at the age of 15 and turn the coin in my pocket into something much bigger, I thought what place could serve the purpose other than a casino? I tried my luck but unfortunately, I was not the lucky one that night. I became so pessimistic and decided to return home when I felt a small arm across my shoulder. When I looked over, there was a boy my age, who spotted the hopelessness in my eyes and decided to lend me some of his money to try and gamble on. But I was not the one to build something for myself with someone else's money. I hadn't given up; in fact, I decided to return when I had some money. So I refused the money Jacob offered and left the casino.

Outside, I realized that Jacob was following me. I stopped in my tracks and glanced back. He stopped a few steps away from me, looked me in the eyes, and said, "Ice cream? My treat. Next time you can return the favor tho." I smiled at that, he smiled back, and

ever since that day we were like the two sides of the same coin. Always together.

There was that time when I had nothing when I came to the casino to try my luck and now was the time when I was the one who owned the most elegant casinos in the city. Well, I could not say that time flies or it was a smooth journey because it surely was not. I had reached this spot after suffering through a bumpy road but I must say that the ride was worth it. The power I had now was worth all the hassles.

After reaching inside the casino, I spotted Jacob without looking here and there because he was the only one with the smoke coming out of his ears. Without wasting any time after having our bro hug he said, "I can't believe you are so late to our weekly meet-up. It isn't like I am asking you to spend your every second, awakening or sleeping, with me that you are this much willing to get rid of me"

"I didn't intend to. Today was a hectic day. Told you about getting a new casino and plans to expand the business. Just got tangled in all that and our meet-up just slipped from my mind." I told him the truth."Of course, you are a busy bee. But I wasn't asking you on a date. You know our weekly meet-ups are a big deal. We get to discuss all the business and money-related shit. Anyways, I should stop whining like a spoiled girlfriend." he chuckled.

"Thanks a bunch, Jacob, now we should move forward like adults to discuss 'BIG DEALS"" I replied innocently.

"So, tell me about this new casino. Has Luca agreed to your plans?"

"How can he? He has spent his whole life running that casino,

building that from a scratch, and making sure no one lays a finger on his empire. He is not willing to give up so easily. But I guess it's the time he gets retired and enjoys some much-needed vacations," I winked.

"What? Retired? What are you exactly going to do Andrew?" He asked confusingly.

"I am gonna ruin his casino and build a new one in the same place," I replied nonchalantly.

"Come on, Andrew. Luca is not the one to mess with and we both know it. We have plenty of casinos. Doesn't matter if you have one at that place or not, you are still the king of casinos in the city and everyone acknowledges it."

"Are you kidding me? Have you forgotten my promise?"

"No, I have not. But it's been 10 years. Forget that. Move on. Being a king of casinos is a slap hard enough on Luca's face." Replied Jacob sincerely.

"Why are we having this pointless discussion, Jacob? You know me. If I have decided something, then that is what I am going to do, no matter the cost. I haven't forgotten that 10 years ago when we decided to try our luck in gambling and went to his casino, he threw us out just because we were not elite enough to step into his plush casino, all the while people were laughing at us. Just then and there, right outside his casino, I swore to own that place and build my own casino at that same spot. Don't think that I forgot about that even for a moment. I was just waiting for the right time. And I think now is the best time, when we have money, power, and reputation."

"I know Andrew. I was there with you. I haven't forgotten about that humiliation either. But getting forward is the best way to get through life. But I know there is no point in telling you all this, if your mind is stuck on something then that thing is yours. Simple as that. But we need to proceed carefully. Luca is not a kid in this game too. He will not easily get swayed by anything we do. He will make sure to strike back and destroy us."

"Don't worry. We haven't reached this far just to be trampled over. Just stick together and we'll weather this storm like all the others in the past," I replied firmly.

I could sense that Jacob was speaking something but I couldn't grasp what because all of a sudden, something had caught my attention. Or maybe someone.

In the far corner of the room, two guys were arguing with a girl in blue jeans and a black tank top, half of her light brown hair pulled up into a messy bun and the other half were falling down her back. The situation seemed to be heated up. All of the sudden, one of the boys pushed the girl and threw her against the wall. The other boy came over her and waved a stash of cash in front of her face, all the while saying something rapidly to her. What caught my attention was the look on the girl's face. She didn't seem to be afraid of two giant, muscular men arguing and threatening her. More like she looked frustrated with them. I took a step towards them, then another but then stopped in my tracks thinking what the hell was I going to do? Why would I want to interfere in someone's business? I had got a lot of my own shit to take care of. Also, the girl didn't look like in the need of help, the way she was shouting back at men indicated that she was fierce enough to take care of herself. Moreover, if the girl would be in danger she would call for the guards. I tried to reason with my brain. The argument was heating up, I was afraid that the men would try to abuse her so, I walked over to them, only because I didn't want any problem in his casino. At least, that was what I told myself, totally ignoring the fact that casinos were the places where the problems begin. Just as the boy was about to slap the girl, I pushed him away and stood at the man's place. Just a millisecond later, I realized someone had punched my face. At first, I thought it was the other man but the punch was too light to be of that Shrek's. So, I looked over at the girl who had her hands cupped over her mouth, a puzzled expression on her face. A pretty face, I realized. A pretty face without any makeup was a rare sight nowadays, was what I thought after looking at her big brown hazel eyes.